I would just like to encourage again, anyone here who doesn’t know the Lord and draw your attention to verse 23 of John 18. Jesus, Jesus answered him, “If what I said is wrong, bear witness about the wrong. But if what I said is right, why do you strike me?” (John 18:23). See, when the Lord said I spoke openly in the world, there was an officer that had the audacity to slap the Lord and strike him, and it could actually have been a rod there. In Micah, I believe it is, it prophesies that he will be struck. And the Lord says, What did I do wrong? Do what I say was wrong? Did I do something that was wrong?
And here he is called an evildoer, in Acts 10, it says he always consistently, constantly went about and he did good (Acts 10:38). And I love that Psalm that says he’s good and he does good (Psalm 119:68). And so I ask you lost person, has he done you any wrong? Why do you strike him? What has the Lord done in your life where you could point to and say, Lord, you didn’t do right here? Has He not kept you alive every moment of your life? Has he not given you good Christian parents, has he not given you food and air to breathe and kept you alive? Why do you strike him?
I struck him for 18 years, choosing other things, choosing Barabbas over him. I just remember when the Lord began to put His finger on my life and I realized here, you know, I grew up on this farm. My parents had done so much for me. They had given me opportunity that gave me love. They gave me food on the table every moment of my life. And my dad gave me the land to work where I could make money and pay for college and pay for my truck. And I was just messing around ungrateful. And the patches that I was growing were full of weeds. And I remember just feeling miserable. So miserable, I didn’t have the world, but I didn’t have Christ either. It was in this middle ground thinking, I’m going to get out of here. I’m going to have fun. I’m going to join the military. I’m going to do whatever I want. I’m going to get tattoos all over my arms. That’s what I thought. And I’m just going to live it up. I’m going to be the wild man in the Special Forces and the Lord He humbled me and I realized every moment of my life he’s kept me alive and my parents sometimes they went into the negative financially just so that we kids could have money at the end of the season because starting out it wasn’t always the greatest. And so they would go into the negative at times. And here I was just messing around, not thankful for my dad, my mom’s kindness. And I realized what I had done.
And brethren, lost person, do you realize what God’s done for you? Why do you strike him? He’s done so much. He’s been so kind to you. Why are you going to keep living your life for yourself and being miserable? You don’t have to be. It’s so unnecessary. He’s gone in the negative for you. He emptied himself, taking on the form of a bondservant (Philippians 2:7). He left His high place, His holy place, and he came down and he lived a perfect life for you. For you to be saved, for you not to live this miserable life. Why do you strike him choosing other things of this world? Lost person, you may think you’re not striking the Lord, but something so precious, so wonderful. You imagine how an insult it is to the Lord when you choose video games over him, when you choose food over him, guns over him, what an insult that you would live for the things of this world more than Christ.
And so I would… I would plead with you. Don’t strike him anymore. Come to him. Isn’t it clear? Is there anything that the Lord taught that’s not clear? Did he not say, Come on to me and I’ll give you rest? (Matthew 11:28). Did he not say I’ll give you life? Living water will flow out of you (John 7:38). I’ll give you eternal life that I’ll know you and you know me (John 17:3). Has he done anything wrong to you that you know of? No, he hasn’t. Everyone in this room can testify. God has been so good and so kind every moment of their life. He’s done you no wrong. Why would you go to hell when he’s offering you so much, so much kindness? You know that verse. It says, If you neglect this great salvation, it won’t go well with you (Hebrews 2:3). At work, someone calls 911 and a medic shows up. You can lose your job for neglecting a patient. If I just showed up and said, Sorry, dude, I’m not going to help you, I will lose my job. That’s neglect. But you neglect your soul every day. Your soul is so sick it’s headed for hell. It’s got a death sentence and the Lord is offering you help and you’re just going to neglect your soul when you’ve got the cure right here. It’s right here among you, the cure to save your soul, to give you life. Well, praise God. I’m just so thankful to talk about him, even though it’s so pitiful. The Lord’s voluntary submission. May we be more like him? Maybe we know him more.
This excerpt is from the full sermon, “The Voluntary Submission of Jesus Christ – Evan Jennings”.
